Ursula von der Leyen was left without a seat at a summit in Ankara on Tuesday after her two male counterparts took the only available chairs, leaving her to perch on a nearby sofa. Within four years of von der Leyen taking over at the ministry, Accenture’s earnings from work with Germany’s armed forces rose from €459,000 in 2014 to around €20 million in 2018, according to Spiegel magazine. Team. At this point, it remains unclear whether von der Leyen was involved in setting up the technical details of contracts with consultants, or how much knowledge she had of the cases now being investigated. He has previously expressed a markedly different view from members of other parties on the ministry’s efforts to get to the bottom of the affair, offering praise for “thorough and comprehensive” cooperation with parliament. But the hiring also set off a process that helped external advisers increase their influence, members of the Bundestag’s committee said. Bühler has said that his personal connection to Noetzel played no role in his professional decisions. Although there is no suggestion that von der Leyen herself was part of this network, the increased use of external consultants has been a hallmark of her tenure as defense minister. “We will have to look at the question of why the internal investigation of the ministry was so sloppy, and if that was intentional, which I suspect it was, then whether the aim was to produce an investigative report that would somehow calm down parliament but ideally not reveal anything,” said Lindner of the Greens. Zwischen der EU und der Türkei knirscht es bei einer Vielzahl von Themen. Hooray! Von der Leyen’s ministry has been little help in shedding light on the affair, multiple investigative committee members said. “That’s a glaring failure of leadership, all the way to the very top, because it sends a signal to the ministry that it doesn’t matter at all if you stick to the rules or don’t — it won’t have any consequences either way,” he said. Footage showed Von der Leyen gesture in … 10 1958 Ixelles/Elsene, Belgien „We must not rebuild economy of yesterday“ The committee’s next job will be to find out how much von der Leyen knew about possible misconduct by officials working under her | Tobias Schwarz/AFP via Getty Images. “Whatever job Ms. von der Leyen has in the future won’t change in any way the fact that the committee will subpoena and question her,” said Tobias Lindner, a member of parliament and the security policy spokesperson for the Greens opposition party. Video footage shows von der Leyen… * 8. Von der Leyen kicked off a far-reaching restructuring process. 30 March 2021. Henning Otte, the spokesperson for von der Leyen’s conservative bloc on the investigative committee, declined to be interviewed for this article. Military equipment was counted by hand and many records existed only on paper, as von der Leyen told the German parliament last November. Von der Leyen -- Germany's former defense minister -- is not your typical Eurocrat. “From the beginning it was Ms. von der Leyen’s desire and political intention that external consultants would gain influence,” said Matthias Höhn, a member of parliament and the spokesperson on security policy for the left-wing Die Linke party. Latest news, analysis and comment from POLITICO’s editors and guest writers on French politics. Von der Leyen and her ministry declined requests for interviews for this story. An investigative committee of the German parliament — the toughest instrument that lawmakers can use to probe government misdeeds — is digging into how lucrative contracts from her ministry were awarded to outside consultants without proper oversight, and whether a network of informal personal connections facilitated those deals. “That’s why we will summon von der Leyen … even if she becomes EU Commission president.”, Höhn of the socialist Die Linke party added that it is “grotesque that so far, there hasn’t been any disciplinary action — not just at leadership level, but anywhere at all.”. Dutch prime minister hints at deal by Saturday to end vaccine exports row. For example, consultants for a project called “Product Lifecycle Management (PLM)” — examining how best to analyse and use data from the A400M transport aircraft  — were hired using an umbrella IT contract set up for a completely unrelated purpose, circumventing the regular procedure for awarding contracts. Latest news, analysis and comment on elections in Europe and beyond. Such reforms of Germany’s crisis-ridden armed forces might have been overdue — but the way von der Leyen approached the process allowed external consultancies to gain influence in the ministry and the military, according to several members of the Bundestag’s investigative committee. News that this Wunderfrau — aka German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen — could become the Commission’s next president left European capitals abuzz on Tuesday. Von der Leyen was eventually offered a seat on a nearby sofa, opposite Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, who occupies a lower-status rank in diplomatic protocol. If she retires one day, she will, however, receive a … Von der Leyen, as president of the European Commission, is head of the EU executive. Due Diligence – The curated, must-read content on corporate finance, mergers & acquisitions, and private equity with scoops and news you can't find elsewhere. Log in to access content and manage your profile. Turkish President Erdogan HUMILIATES EU chief Ursula von der Leyen Pathetic 60 Minutes busted trying to smear Florida Gov. The Mennonite family established a major textile business in Krefeld in the 18th century. Those consultants played a more significant role than the ministry had publicly claimed, several media reports said: In 2015, for example, auditors estimated that the ministry had spent up to €100 million on external consultants, but only officially declared €2.2 million for the purpose. The watchdog, which monitors German government cashflows, described dozens of irregularities in the hiring of external consultants by von der Leyen's defense ministry. EUROPEAN Commission president Ursula von der Leyen was visibly stunned after being left without a chair in a summit meeting with Turkey’s president. A year later, the ministry had spent up to €150 million on advisers while declaring only €2.9 million. Als Beitrag zu mehr Gerechtigkeit im Rentensystem - so sieht Arbeitsministerin Ursula von der Leyen (CDU) ihren Vorschlag für eine . Her father Ernst Albrecht worked as one of the first European civil servants from the establishment of the European Commission in 1958, first as chef de cabinet to the European commissioner for competition Hans von der Groeben in the Hallstein Commission, and then as director-general of the Directorate-General for Competi… On the video, von der Leyen can be heard saying “Hmm” or “Ehm,” and was offered a seat on a couch to the side of other two leaders. But not … EU-Kommissionspräsidentin von der Leyen und EU-Ratspräsident Michel sind bei ihrem Ankara-Besuch auf Entspannung aus. When von der Leyen faces the committee, she will likely also face questions about an internal inquiry by her ministry into the affair | Odd Andersen/AFP via Getty Images. That gained her respect among some soldiers — but didn’t make her lots of friends in other parts of the military, her ministry and industry, according to officials working under her at the time. Bühler and other ministry officials rejected such accusations in their testimony to MPs. MyFT – track the topics most important to you, FT Weekend – full access to the weekend content, Mobile & Tablet Apps – download to read on the go, Gift Article – share up to 10 articles a month with family, friends and colleagues. Criticism of the ministry over the scandal has come from multiple opposition parties and the SPD, the junior partner in Germany’s coalition government. But others have put forward a less innocent explanation — that some consultants had privileged access to ministry officials that helped them circumvent rules and win contracts worth millions of euros. Brought to you weekly from the FT and Nikkei. Critics allege cronyism played role in award of contracts worth millions by German defense ministry. 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Von der Leyen is the only minister to have been in Angela Merkel's cabinet since she took office in 2005, first as Minister of Family Affairs and Youth from 2005 to 2009, then as Minister of Labour and Social Affairs from 2009 to 2013, before becoming Minister of Defence in 2013. “All of this, if you ask me, was a crude attempt to distract from misconduct and cover up for people among the leadership,” Rohde added. Die Zuschussrente soll deshalb "Lohn für Lebensleistung" sein. Access our pick of the most crucial global news, comment and analysis of the moment, updated three times a day. In-depth reporting, data and actionable intelligence for policy professionals – all in one place. The auditors’ main criticism wasn’t that the ministry paid for outside expertise — which security experts say is needed, particularly when it comes to applying new digital technologies. By logging in, you confirm acceptance of our POLITICO Privacy Policy. Wie die Bundesarbeitsministerin, Ursula von der Leyen (CDU), der Welt sagte, werde sie noch in dieser Legislaturperiode eine Regelung finden, um den Missbrauch bei den Billiglöhnen in der Zeitarbeit zu dämpfen. In the summer of 2014, von der Leyen announced that Katrin Suder, a successful business consultant, would join the ministry in the powerful position of armaments state secretary, overseeing billions of euros in procurement spending and reporting directly to the minister. Those consultants played a more significant role than the ministry had publicly claimed, several media reports said: … “The fact is that so far neither the internal investigation nor the behavior of her ministry have reflected any great commitment to clear up this matter,” said the SPD’s Rohde. But after some high-ranking officials refused to talk to parliamentarians, opposition lawmakers joined together in December to force the establishment of the investigative committee that would allow them to subpoena witnesses. Trade Secrets – Trade Secrets is the FT's must-read daily briefing on the changing face of international trade and globalisation. The Berlaymont building, EUropean Commission headquarters in Brussels | Mark Renders/Getty Images. Der Beitrag wirkt wie ein Screenshot von der Nachrichtenwebseite Focus Online.Darauf weisen das Logo sowie die Menüleiste hin. Forging unity within the European Union is rarely easy for a president of the European commission but Ursula von der Leyen managed at least to bring two … 38 talking about this. Ariel Investments’ John Rogers: Taking a contrarian view to beat markets and prejudice, Liftoff by Eric Berger — Musk’s otherworldly ambition, US inflation fears grow as bond turmoil continues, Rob Brydon: ‘Hollywood? Latest news, analysis and comment from POLITICO’s editors and guest writers in Europe. “Not ruling out anything” includes, according to von der Leyen, potentially blocking vaccine exports to countries who don’t share their vaccines. Twice Weekly. Last November, she told the German parliament there had been “mistakes” in how external consultants were hired and said “this never should have happened.” But she defended the use of such consultants, saying they had been required to undertake a huge overhaul of the ministry. Ursula von der Leyen bei Recep Tayyip Erdogan. EU chief Ursula von der Leyen was left "surprised" after being left without a chair during a high-level meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Von der Leyen (German pronunciation: [fɔn deːɐ̯ ˈlaɪən] is a German noble family which made its fortune as silk merchants and silk weaving industrialists. Members of von der Leyen’s conservative camp have backed her and the ministry but even some of them have been less than full-throated in their defense. Latest news, analysis and comment from POLITICO’s editors and guest writers on the continent. I don’t want it enough’, Not OK, computer: music streaming’s diversity problem. Over the years that followed, contracts were awarded to several consultancies. Von der Leyen blamed the problems on a mixture of negligence, corner-cutting and mistakes by individuals overwhelmed by their work. In addition to FT content, our editors select key stories from around the web that you shouldn't miss. Von der Leyen tried to sound a hopeful longer-term note on EU vaccine supplies, raising the target for the 450m-population bloc for the second quarter of the year from 300m doses to 360m. Im Folgenden soll ein Blick auf ihre Einnahmen als Ministerin, Mitglied des Bundestags und weitere Einnahmen der gebürtigen Belgierin geworfen werden. 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